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Transportation from Penang to Danok: Danok is fast growing into an important town. I am not sure whether it can be classified as a town yet. So where is Danok and what does it have to attract tourist? I took a two days trip on the 29th August 2005 and spend a night to see for myself and to bring informations for those seeking to know more about Danok. I can still remember when I used to travel to Southern Thailand town of Hatyai, in the middle eighties and early nineties. At that time, although the name of the town Danok is in existence, no one take a second look at it when passing by. Travellers just stop to get their immigration and transport paper works done and be on their way to other parts of Thailand, especially Hatyai and Songkla. The immigration check point, then, was about 5km or 3 miles away from the border and any other additional travel requirements had to be done at Sadao, another 12km or 7 miles away. So at that time Danok is just a name and nothing much to see or offer. On the Malaysian side of the border, call Bukit Kayu Hitam, a duty free shopping complex was built, and with the expansion of the immigration and custom checkpoint, the arrival of tourists both locals and foreigns started to grow. The closing time of the immigration was altered from 5pm(+7GMT) to 9pm and finally to midnight local Malaysian time. In the nineties, with the consolidation of the Thai immigration and custom checkpoint into one center location to facilitate the increase of travellers, a complex housing them was built just right at the border inside Danok. With the completion of the Thai immigration and customs complex, together with the Malaysian expansion, nearly all travellers and transportation cargos from both side of the countries, travelling by land uses these check points. Danok is the town where the Thai immigration and custom complex was built on. This unknown town started to grow as more Thais come visiting the Malaysian duty free complex as well as Malaysian and Singaporean going to Hatyai passes through. Road side stalls started to grow to cater for these hungry visitors looking for cheap goods, especially foods and local products. Many Malaysian traders started to flow into Danok town daily to buy the cheaper goods available here. Malaysians from as far as Penang make day trips to this border town. It looks like Danok had grown overnight with the increase volume of visitors and trading from both sides. There are many mini vans and coach buses plying from different cities in Malaysia and also Singapore to Hatyai daily, and all uses the Bukit Kayu Hitam / Danok check points. For now, there are no travel agencies specifically cater for trips to Danok town. But if you want to make the trip to Danok, it is not a real problem. You can arrange with your travel agency to drop you off at Danok and pick you up on their return trip from Hatyai. The cost of the trip will be the same although Hatyai is another 30 miles away. For those who have their own transportation, you can drive right up to Bukit Kayu Hitam and park your cars at the Malaysian side near the Malaysian immigration check point. You can walk across, Danok is just 5 minutes walk away. In between the two countries immigration check points, there is the Malaysian Duty Free Complex. You can buy the duty free goods and take them out of the country but in order for you to bring any duty free goods into Malaysia, you have to be away for at least 72 hours. For many who crosses over to Danok to have fun and enjoyment for the night usually will buy liquors and cigarettes as they are much cheaper. To summarise, Danok is just another border town like any others but it is fast growing with new buildings under construction and population increase. Continue reading My Trip To Danok. |
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